Tuesday, January 21, 2020 I Vol. 116 Iss. 19
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AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER • SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904
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PREPARING FOR THE BICENTENNIAL
LeBlanc to hold community receptions in 10 cities across the nation ILENA PENG CONTRIBUTING NEWS EDITOR
University President Thomas LeBlanc held the first of 10 planned receptions across the country last Tuesday to celebrate GW’s achievements and increase community engagement. The GW + You Community Receptions, at which LeBlanc aims to engage alumni, students and their families in a “conversation about the vision for GW’s future as we approach our
third century,” will take place in six states and D.C. over the course of the spring semester. The receptions come amid planning for GW’s bicentennial anniversary in February 2021, during which officials are slated to launch a major fundraising campaign. LeBlanc traveled to Philadelphia last week for the first event and will head to California next week to hold
events in Los Angeles Jan. 28 and San Francisco two days later. Registration is open for people interested in attending the receptions in California and Florida, where LeBlanc will head in February to meet community members in Miami and Tampa. LeBlanc named philanthropy and constituent engagement among his five key strategic initiatives after arriving at GW two years
ago. In his first year in office, he embarked on a tour of five U.S. cities to discuss his priorities and traveled to London to boost alumni engagement. Later this semester, LeBlanc will visit cities like New York City, Boston and Richmond, Virginia, in addition to a stop in Northern Virginia. The tour will end with an event in the District on June 11.
Death in vacant I Street home prompts calls to restore neighborhood properties LIA DEGROOT ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
LILLIAN BAUTISTA | CONTRIBUTING PHOTO EDITOR GW accepted about $76 million from the Saudi government and about $3 million from the Chinese government.
GW took millions from China, Saudi Arabia, largely in tuition, since 2013 MEREDITH ROATEN SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Officials have accepted nearly $80 million in funding from foreign governments in recent years, mostly in tuition payments. The University took more than $75 million from the governments of China and Saudi Arabia since 2013, according to U.S. Department of Education disclosures. Officials said a large portion of the funding went toward student tuition grants, and the remainder funded academic initiatives. University spokeswoman Crystal Nosal said all of the money GW received from Saudi Arabia funds tuition payments for students. About 70 percent of the funding provided by China went to seminars, workshops and tuition, while the remainder of the money funded GW’s Confucius Institute, an educational program that supports the study of Chinese language and culture. “Foreign governments have for many years provided tuition and expenses for pre-college, undergraduate, graduate and medical education and training for their students attending GW,” she said in an email. “We regularly evaluate our international programs, including our programs with these countries, to ensure they are consistent with our educational mission.” Nosal declined to confirm the amount of funding that appears in the disclosures
to the Department of Education. She also declined to take a position on criticisms of ties between the United States and China and Saudi Arabia on account of issues related to human rights, free speech and intellectual property theft. GW accepted $76 million in contracts from the Saudi Arabian government since 2013 and $3.4 million from the government of China, the disclosures state. The Chinese government also gave the University about $333,945 in gifts, according to the disclosures. Funding from foreign governments at universities has increasingly come under scrutiny after FBI director Christopher Wray testified before a U.S. Senate panel that the Chinese government was “taking advantage” of the United States through its universities by “exploiting” the country’s research environment. The Department of Education announced in November that federal officials found $1.3 billion in unreported foreign funding in the early stages of its investigation of six U.S. universities. Officials said about a year ago that they were not considering closing GW’s chapter of the Confucius Institute, one of the many centers for China studies that has faced scrutiny from academic freedom experts and members of Congress for spreading government propaganda. See OFFICIALS Page 4
Foggy Bottom residents are pressing community leaders to restore decrepitlooking properties in the neighborhood after a woman was found dead in a vacant I Street home. Alaina Gertz, a Metropolitan Police Department spokeswoman, said police officers responded to the 2500 block of I Street on Jan. 10 at about 9:50 p.m. for a report of an unconscious person. The woman had gone missing on New Year’s Eve, according to an MPD release, and Gertz said officers found the woman unconscious and not breathing in a vacant I Street property. The incident has raised concerns from Foggy Bottom neighbors over two other properties on the street, 2505 I St. and 2506 I St., which are run-down and vacant. Community leaders said they are planning to hold a meeting Tuesday to discuss how to address the state of the homes. Gertz said D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services responded to the scene and pronounced the woman dead. “D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services responded to the scene, where they found no signs consistent with life, and the victim was pronounced dead,” she said in an email. She said the woman was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, and the case is still under
investigation. Gertz said MPD will continue to respond to service requests for drug and narcotic complaints on the block. “We advise that if anyone witnesses any type of illegal activity to immediately call 911,” she said. Duncan Bedlion, the Second District commander, said at a neighborhood meeting Wednesday that MPD’s technical team is further investigating the woman’s death. Bedlion said he and other officers found evidence in the home that several people may be using the home to take drugs. “There was some indication that drug activity was taking place,” Bedlion said. “That was observed by me. I was there. I can’t disclose to you what we know about the victim at this time.” The Hatchet is not naming the woman to respect her privacy. Bedlion added that the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs boarded up the property last week to prevent people from entering the house, which is pending development. He said MPD can provide additional patrolling in the area if community members have further concerns about the property. “Let Lieutenant Terry, let Captain Caldwell – who’s your sector captain – know, and we’ll have our officers give special attention,” Bedlion said. See ASSOCIATION Page 5
ALEXANDER WELLING | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR Metropolitan Police Department officers found a woman dead in a vacant house on the 2500 block of I Street earlier this month.